


Sickness

by Pastel_Teacups



Category: Star Trek, Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-11-01
Updated: 2013-11-11
Packaged: 2017-12-31 05:19:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 1,427
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1027688
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pastel_Teacups/pseuds/Pastel_Teacups
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>McCoy finds out that by some sickness, Pavel's left with only a month to live.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

It wasn't fair. 

It didn't seem fair anyways. Of all people, his Pavel had become the one with a month to live. And he'd had to tell him.

He sat Pavel, who was all smiles, down in his office and pulled a chair over to face the teen. 

"Pasha, there's something you need to know." He said, looking down at his hands rather than the kid. 

"Vhat is it, Leonard?" He asked, smiling lightly. 

Leonard glances up, and sighs heavily. "I'm not sure how it happened, but..." The man hesitated. "You've contracted an illness that destroys the immune system and infects and destroys cells. You've only got a month to live, Pavel." 

The boy's smile quickly vanished, taken over by blankness. "V-Vhat?" He'd whispered, eyes wide. 

"We're looking for a cure, but we don't think we'll find one in time. I'm so sorry, Pasha." 

"Oh." The teen whispered, his voice small and childish. He slouches slightly, and Leonard leans forward and wraps his arms around the boy, pulling him close. 

The boy moves out of his chair and into the doctor's lap. He doesn't cry, just leans into the man's chest.   
\--  
That night, Leonard wakes up to a tiny, crystalline sob. He doesn't have to roll over to know who it is. 

He does, though, and wraps his arms around the boy. 

"Hey, it's okay. We'll figure it out. We can do whatever you want, wherever." 

The boy's tears wet his shirt, and he shakes his head. "It's not fair." The boy sobs, shaking his head. 

Leonard agreed. He was only seventeen, for god's sake. He was supposed to have his whole life laid out on a damn platter in front of him. It wasn't supposed to end like this. "I know, darlin'." 

He lets Pave sob against him and sighs, petting the boy's curls soothingly. 

Finally, Pavel calmed down enough to simply hiccup and and sniffle, before burying his face in the doctor's neck. 

"I vant to go home." 

And so, they do.


	2. Chapter 2

Pavel greets his parents in Russian, considering his parents don't speak a word of Standard, and hugs them both tightly. He makes a motion to Leonard as he speaks, and the woman embraces him just as tightly, and Pavel's father shakes his hand. 

"My parents say it is wery nice to meet you." Pavel says. He looks happier, more at home. 

Leonard figures he won't get another chance to say it, so he says it. "You're sure you don't want to tell them?" 

Pavel's smile stays, if only for the sake of his parents. "Of course I'm sure. It vould only upset zem." 

Leonard nods after a moment, and feels bad that he brought it up. 

Pavel turns and says something to his mother, and then his father. They smile, and embrace him again, before ushering the two of them into the kitchen. 

Pavel and his mother talk, Pavel still holding Leonard's hand tightly. Then, he turns to Leonard. "My mozer vould like to know if you enjoy being a doctor." 

Leonard smiles at Pavel's smile. He hasn't seen it in such a long time. "Sure I do. It's bittersweet, though. You get to help people, but you also get to deliver the bad news." 

The boy nods, relays the information, and grips Leonard's hand. 

They eat dinner and talk more, Pavel playing translator for his parents, then they leave for their hotel.

"What now?" Leonard asks gently. They're lying in bed together, Pavel's head lolling on the doctor's chest. 

"I don't know." Pavel says quietly. 

"There must be _something_."   
\--  
"It's beautiful out here." Pavel says dreamily, lounging under one of the blankets. 

"It's freezing." Leonard complains, climbing into the bed with the teen. "I can't believe I'm doing this." 

They're sitting in a bed, under the stars, in the middle of a field. It's dark, the nearest city miles away. They can see every star in the sky. It really _is_ freezing, but the worst part (which was getting a damn bed in the middle of a field) is over. Now, he just lays beside Pavel and wraps and arm around him. Pavel simply smiles and holds Leonard's hand, naming stars and constellations.

Eventually, the endless lists of stars dull and Pavel falls asleep, while Leonard sighs contently and closes his eyes.   
\--  
"You sure about this?" Leonard asks, glancing down. They're on top of a cliff, water washing over the bottom of it. 

"Vhy not?" Pavel asks, not looking down. _The trick is to not look down,_ he reminded himself, biting his lip nervously. 

"I can think of a million answers to that." Leonard says, but sheds his shirt when Pavel does, anyways. 

"Not wery much to lose anymore." The boy says, swallowing nervously before jumping, falling too many feet to be strictly safe. 

He looks smaller from up here, and he hits the water in a puff of white foam. He reappears only moments later, shaking the water out of his hair and looking up, waving his hand to beckon him down. 

Leonard swears, disappears from Pavel's sight, reappears and then jumps. 

It takes him a few moments to hit the water, and another few for him to resurface. When he does, he sputters and tries to catch his breath. 

"Satisfied?" Leonard asks, shaking his head. Pavel laughs quietly, and nods.   
\--  
That night, they sit on the roof of the tallest available building, their legs hanging off the edge. 

"How much longer?" Pavel asks softly, holding Leonard's hand. 

"Three weeks exactly." The doctor replies softly, looking down at the bustling city below.

Pavel nods softly. "Leonard?" 

"Hm?" 

"Tell me about your family?" 

Leonard sighs gently, biting his lip. He didn't want to talk about his family. 

"Or just one family member. Anything." Pavel corrects quickly, leaning his head on Leonard's shoulder. 

He thinks for a minute, before speaking. "I've got a daughter. Her name's Johanna. She's about six now." 

"Vhat's she like?" Pavel whispers, and Leonard looks down.


	3. Chapter 3

"Vhat if she doesn't like me?" Pavel asks nervously, sitting on Leonard's old Georgian couch. 

"Don't be silly. She'll love you." Leonard says, kissing the side of Pavel's head. 

"You're sure?" Pavel asks. But the doorbell's ringing, and Leonard's already up to answer it. 

A woman's standing stiffly in the doorway. She's tall and blonde, very pretty, and she's holding a dark-haired little girl's hand. 

"Jocelyn." Leonard greets formally. She makes a noise of recognition, and straightens her sunglasses, which were wide and touched her cheeks. Then, she gently nudges the little girl inside. Without a word, she turns and walks away, her blonde hair swinging in its wake. 

The little girl looks up, smiling lightly. "Daddy!" She calls, putting up her arms. Leonard picks her up and spins her, smiling. 

"Oh, you've gotten heavy." Leonard groans, setting the girl down. They're both momentarily oblivious to Pavel, and it gives him time to admire them. He'd never thought of Leonard as a daddy. At least, in that sense. 

Johanna giggles before her eyes move to Pavel, and then she looks away and hides behind Leonard's legs. 

"Jo," The doctor says, gently pushing the girl towards Pavel. "This is Pavel." 

"Pavel," The girl says, running a hand through her surprisingly long hair. 

"Hello." Pavel says gently, crouching down to get on her level. 

Johanna walks forward slowly, looking up at him. "Who are you?" 

"My name is Pavel Chekov." He replies. 

"Are you nice?" 

Pavel smiles, nodding. "I zink so. Your dad zinks so, too."

Johanna smiles. "Then I like you." 

Pavel nods softly, and smiles brightly. "Good." 

Johanna giggles, and then turns to Leonard. "Daddy, can we have pancakes for dinner?" 

"Pancakes? For dinner?" Leonard asks, raising an eyebrow. "I don't know about that." 

By now, Johanna's climbed onto Pavel's shoulders, and she's playing with Pavel's curls. "Oh, but please?" She asks, pouting. Pavel nods. 

"Oh, come on Leonard, vhy not?" The boy asks, shrugging. Doing so makes Johanna bounce, and she giggles. 

Leonard shakes his head. "Alright, fine. We'll make pancakes for dinner." 

Johanna cheers, and Leonard hears Pavel's beautiful crystal laugh.  
\--  
Pavel and Johanna help, mixing the pancake mix and flipping them. Johanna also insists that they pour the mix in shapes rather than "boring old circles," so by the time they sit down to eat they've got a heart, a Starfleet insignia, a skull and crossbones, and much more. 

By the end of dinner Johanna's sticky with syrup, and Leonard makes her go wash it off. 

"She's sweet." Pavel says. They're sitting on the couch, and Leonard nods. 

He knows.


End file.
